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"What else is there to say but............
 "The
school provides an extremely supportive and caring ethos in which
all students receive the help and guidance they need to do well.”
Ofsted came suddenly, worked swiftly and reported promptly that
Chauncy is a good school with outstanding features. They were
very complimentary about leadership and management and the pastoral
care we provide. They described behaviour as very good and the
students’ contribution to the community as outstanding. The
best aspect, in my view, was that they praised the way our students
look after each other, whether as mentors or just as young people in
their everyday lives.
Full
details of the report are on the school website. Thirteen
“outstanding” and twenty six “good” grades to build on for next
time—possibly in 2013.
Chauncy
Rocks is on 11 July and I am, so far, alone in recommending a Chas
‘n Dave medley. We are recruiting more parents and friends to
perform and ideas for this have to go to Richard Halman, he of the
bass guitar, via the school e-mail. If you want to play solo,
as part of a band or even on the mass blues introduction let us
know. We have yet to feature a violin/fiddle player on any
songs. Richard, Angela Brand and I are searching for the grand
finale number. Remember Peter Reynolds “Born To Be Wild” and
Nicki Borsden’s “Wild Thing!?
Also
on the 11 July is our Chauncy in the Community Day when Steve Walton
organises around 1.500 children and adults to paint church halls,
clear river banks, sing to old folks, teach ICT to younger children
and dozens of other projects. Contact him if you have
suggestions for what else we might do or you would like to join in.
Sadly,
I have to announce the death of Jacquie Brian following a long
battle with cancer. Jacquie spent nearly 20 years at Chauncy,
as a French and German Teacher, Head of Year and Head of MFL.
I have a fixed image of her delivery of “Hey Big Spender” when she
meandered through the audience with her feather boa and wonderful
voice thrilling us all. Jacquie lived her 65 years to the full
enjoying life, sharing laughter with family and colleagues and
teaching and guiding thousands of young people. As with all
good teachers, she will be remembered with admiration and fondness
by many young people.
Dennis
O'Sullivan
Exchanges
2007 and 2008
The
exchanges have quickly become the highlight of the year in the
languages department. They usually end in tears, but only
because no one wants to go home! We very much hope that
other students will join us in this experience next academic year.
Mrs Martin and Mr Jurado.
The Modern
Languages Department would like to thank the students and families
who have made this year’s exchanges such a success. We are proud of
our links through the community and really appreciate the
opportunities that the twinning committees of Ware and Buntingford
have made possible. These exchanges give students the chance to
travel abroad and find out how other people live, providing
invaluable experience of using their foreign language. Some
friendships continue on long after the school trips and it is great
to know that some students have already made plans to go back to
Ólvega or Cormeilles-en-Parisis independently.
GCSE Spanish Exchange
Ólvega
is a small
town in the mountains close to Zaragoza- 300 kms north east of
Madrid. It is twinned with Buntingford who offered us the
chance to exchange with a small secondary school. It has only
120 students!
NOVEMBER:
Spanish
students came to England for Guy Fawkes night . They enjoyed punting
in Cambridge and a meal of sausage, mash and beans followed by apple
crumble and custard provided by the Buntingford Committee. When they
came to Ware they visited Chauncy, St Catherine’s and the Ware
museum. The exchange ended with the traditional family party in the
hall.
FEBRUARY:
A group of
15 Chauncy students went to Ólvega for the carnival. Our
partners provided us all with costumes – even the teachers! The
freezing cold did not deter us from having fun and we particularly
enjoyed our day out in Madrid and the visit to the primary school.
Children as young as 5 or 6 were happy to show us what English they
could speak. The town are keen to develop young peoples’ interest in
English and we were treated like celebrities!
“I
loved the Spanish Exchange because it was really interesting to stay
with a family from another country and see the differences in how
they live. It gave me the opportunity to go to a lot of
interesting places and meet loads of amazing new people. The
people in Ólvega were very welcoming and made sure that we all had a
great time. We went during carnival which allowed us to see
what a Spanish ‘fiesta’ is like. The carnival was amazing and
it was a lot of fun dressing up and having a good time together
beforehand”.
“I
really liked the Spanish Exchange because it was interesting to see
how other people live. It was hard to speak Spanish 24/7 but
we all managed. The food was the best because it’s very
different”.
“I really enjoyed the exchange and learnt new phrases. The
family I stayed with were very welcoming and I hope to return in the
future”.
French Exchange - Year 9 and GCSE Students
Cormeilles-en-Parisis
is similar
to Ware. It has the same size population and is only 30
minutes from the capital city. It has been twinned with Ware
since 2001. Every year we exchange with one class from the
Section Européen. Students from this class have 5 hours a week
of lessons in English, including History and Geography so they are
all keen to come to England.
NOVEMBER:
We set off on 14 November and were the first school group to travel
on Eurostar out of St Pancras! Despite there being a rail strike in
France we still managed a full itinerary, including a visit to
Rouen, bowling, the interactive impressionist museum at Auvers and
Disneyland Paris. In school the students had 2 joint lessons.
The freeze frame animation lesson was particularly enjoyable.
MARCH:
As OFSTED went down the drive so our exchange visitors arrived! Our
curriculum is very different to theirs and so they really enjoyed
attending the opening night of the Wizard of Oz. Their itinerary
included a day in Ware, Dickens’ World and Blue Water, London and
Cambridge. On the last day they even joined 8P in a lesson of
conversation and games.
“I
enjoyed the exchange so much because I was so close to my exchange
partner. We had such a nice time, we had lots to talk about
and laugh about. I have missed Anne-Laure but I have been
talking to her on the internet and in August I am going to stay with
her in France, next year in the 6 weeks holiday she will come and
stay at my house. I think me and Anne-Laure were the closest
on the trip. Anne-Laure’s parents helped me to learn more
French and they were so nice to me it was my first time on the
exchange and I loved it”.
Sixth Form
Work Experience
Our A level
students are really fortunate that the twin towns are able to
provide work placements while we are on exchange. Students
have the chance to find out about the world of work in France or
Spain and at the same time learn how to use a more formal style of
the spoken language.
Cormeilles-en-Parisis:
This year
4 students had already been to Cormeilles on exchange when they were
younger and so settled in quickly. They were placed in a bakery, the
library, the town hall and a secondary school.
Ólvega:
In
February we were able to launch this project for three Year 12
students. They worked in both the primary and secondary schools as
assistants alongside the English teachers. We very much hope
to be able to find them placements in other businesses next year.
French Work Experience
“Before we went on the work experience, I was so scared but as soon
as I was introduced to my family I felt much better, they’re so
lovely.
“Working in the bakery gave me loads of confidence and I think that
being asked to serve customers has really improved my listening and
speaking skills. I got to see how all of the pastries and
breads were made and everyone really tried to make me feel at home.
I think the work experience was one of my best ever trips to France
and I cant wait to go back and see everyone”.
“The family I stayed with and the people in the library I worked
with were really nice and my French definitely improved.
Hopefully I will be staying with the same family this year”.
“I worked in the town hall. It was interesting to see all the
different things that happen behind the scenes and listening to the
people helped me a lot with my French. I also had to type some
important documents and talk to my colleagues about their work.
The whole experience was fun and helpful and I liked Disneyland
too”.
Spanish Work Experience
“I
enjoyed working with the children in the primary school as it meant
that I had to use my Spanish speaking skills in an informative way.
Not only was it a challenge to speak the language but also to
explain the activities properly. It was very enjoyable and I
would definitely do it again”.
“The children in the school were really enthusiastic and I enjoyed
helping them with their English. The carnival night was great
and I got to meet lots of new people”.
The Sex Factor
While there
were no auditions, it was an exciting day for Year 9 students as
they followed the fortunes of 4 teenagers in the play “The Sex
Factor” and through the workshops and classroom sessions presented
by the “Tip of the Iceberg” Theatre Company.
Issues
relating to relationships, the need to gain control of decision
making and advice on where to seek guidance and support were the
main themes of the day, with a large emphasis on personal safety and
what is safe and unsafe with regard to relationships.
The day was
clearly a success as demonstrated by the fact that one student said
part way through the day “I thought that today was just going to be
about sex, but there has been so much about the importance of
relationships that it has changed my perspective on the whole
topic.”
This view
was reinforced by Lisa Schulberg, director of the play, who
said “The year group were fantastic and I think one of the most
mature responses to the Knowledge Box in a long time - which
probably helped us with our frankness.”
This type of
approach to sex and relationships education will be continued later
in the term when the school nurse team will cover issues such as
STD’s and where to get contraceptive advice.
Matthew
Gibson
English -
Dracula Conference
On Monday 3
March, a group of Year 12 students went to a conference on their
exam novel, ‘Dracula’. The conference was at Kennedy Hall in
Camden. Throughout the day students listened to a variety of
lectures on the novel, led by a number of Lecturers' from
Universities such as Cambridge and Oxford. It was an enjoyable
and beneficial day giving the students an opportunity to hear
different interpretations of the text.
Holly
Conroy
English - GCSE Literature
On Friday 11 April, all Year 11
students were involved in a workshop on their GCSE English
Literature novel. Many students joined in with the theatre
company and were quickly on stage acting out key scenes and
discussing characters and main themes. The aim was to inspire
new enthusiasm for the novel and boost confidence.
District
Sports Website
You can find
the District Sports website at www.lvssa.co.uk.
The website
will be showing local sporting events, including events involving
Chauncy students.
If you have
any concerns regarding your child being viewed in this manner,
please contact Miss M Goodwin, Head of PE.
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